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Vann Skyforge
Early Life Vann Skyforge was a stoic defender of the peace in the Suffering Coast. At the age of five, he learned of his grandfathers true origin - the fallen Marauder Jaelon had secretly harbored a son, Vann's father Juros. Juros didn't become an adventurer like his father before him, and instead embraced the art of blacksmithing and designing weapons. They say that talent skips a generation however, so Vann caught the adventuring bug quickly and severely. Realizing that Vann would thrive among like-minded individuals rather than the goats and pigs at the family farm, Juros enrolled him into Jecht's Little Pumpkins where Vann learned all he knew of being a defender of the peace. Most importantly, he learned all about his grandfather from someone who knew him very well, Jaelon's good friend and fellow Marauder, Jecht Valhalla. Vann earned good marks throughout all of his years, but always had trouble with mathematics. What he did understand very well however was that goblin + hammer = dead goblin, and that formula hasn't let him down yet. The Javelins Three years after graduating from Jecht's Little Pumpkins, we find Vann Skyforge as a grown man leading his own group of adventurers, just like his grandfather Jaelon before him. This group was forged in the fires and trials of Jecht's Little Pumpkins' final year mission courses, and the for-real apprentice missions that they had earned the right to carry out. The group, known as The Javelins by those at the academy and the surrounding lands, had earned a reputation for getting the job done quickly and *mostly* quietly. Who was to blame if a few buildings were destroyed when apprehending a rogue band of goblins in the town square? The architects of those buildings, that's who. This merry band consisted of four members: Randall Brownbear, an enormous man with a bellowing laugh, and a large bear skin cloak, more than proficient with his polearm, which legend says he made from a fallen oak tree, like the whole oak tree. Han Shester, a man of medium build, very opinionated, relying on his sword and shield to settle his quarrels when the facts did not line up in his favor. Next was Micah Perrence, a swift and cunning soul who brought his enemies to justice with a great axe and a sharp wit. Along with Vann, these warriors aligned under the teachings of Jaelon the Just, to bring justice and aid to the lands they called home. In the years following their graduation from the academy, they prospered as a go-to team when a wrong needed to be righted. They had not met a goblin or werewolf they couldn't put down, nor a neighborly quarrel they could not quell peacefully. One fateful morning however, it all came crumbling down. Just after dawn, the team had packed up thier camp and set out for a small village on the outskirts of the Iron Fields to investigate claims of a Wendigo attacking the villagers, a simple enough task. As the sun started to pour through the clouds, the forest path they were following became dark, and a strange mist started to roll in. Vann noticed that the other three didn't seem to realize the presence of the mist, so he didn't think anything of it. Suddenly the mist took a humanoid form, and that was the last thing that Vann could remember. He awoke the next morning aching from head to toe, blood and bits of metal lying everywhere on the path before him, clearly a battle took place here. His friends were nowhere to be found, Vann panicked, were they dead? Were they captured? There was no way to know, with no footprints or any trail of any sort leading away from the area. He thought maybe his friends had thought him dead, and continued on to the village destination. When Vann arrived at the villiage, well, there wasn't much village left. The buildings were burned down to the last log, the well was dried up, not a soul to be found anywhere. "Welp, either Randall got drunk and accidentally razed the city again or these two incidents are connected." Vann thought. With no other leads, Vann decided to return to the capital and visit his grandfather Jaelon's temple for guidance, it was time for the annual celebration of the defeat of the dragons, and there would be many reputable people from the Suffering Coast in attendance. But Vann's trip to the capitol gave him more than he ever could've bargained for... Sons of the Coast Shortly following Vann's arrival to the City of the Three Hills, he was greeted by his childhood friend and graduating classmate at Jecht's Little Pumpkins - the prince Petyr Woo. He was invited to join the royal dais just before the King's address to the people in attendance, but what followed had broken up the celebration and thrust the two friends into a quest to save the Suffering Coast as their forefathers did. The capitol came under attack from a horde of goblins and orcs that had somehow snuck through the city's sewers, claiming that they represented a force known as the "Great Darkness". They warned the King that his days were numbered, and so the group of would-be heroes who stepped up to fight the intruders back were given an assignment - investigate this "Great Darkness" and snuff it from existence for good. Vann, like his grandfather before him, finally had a crusade of his own, and that day - the Sons of the Coast were formed. Legacy Feeling unfulfilled after the defeat of the Beholder, Vann set out to rid the countryside of evil once more. With his dear friends in the Sons of the Coast going their separate ways, and his original team The Javelins still dead and unavenged, he found his way back to the temple of Jaelon searching for guidance. Once there he conscripted a group of familiar paladins into his service, and began traveling town to town to help out wherever was needed. They took jobs as big as clearing dungeons and as small as fixing squeaking door hinges, never asking for a cent, just a meal and rations if they could be spared. Over time, they had adopted the name The Javelin Vanguard, or Vann's Guard, depending on who you asked. From time to time Vann was blessed with visions allowing him to commune with Jaelon himself who led him on the path to true righteousness, and also allowed the Vanguard to use the Temple of Jaelon as a base of operations. Over the years the team grew and grew and the temple base became know as The School of Justice. Feeling that he had finally made a difference, Vann happily waited for the day that the Sons of the Coast reunited, for he missed his old friends dearly despite the new allegiances he had forged. Over the years, Vann's School of Justice expanded and made waves throughout the Suffering Coast. By the time of the Age of Discovery, Vann's virtues, teachings, and legacy had evolved into a full-fledged religion and way of life, followed closely and guarded faithfully by his descendants and pupils. The new capitol for Vannstianity, as it was known, was erected in the city of Vann's eventual death and ascension in Tenbolsten - which forever became known as Donvannstinople.